Men's Lifestyle March 17, 2026 0 Comments

Inside the Secret Bookstore Celebrities Swear By—Unlocking the Hidden Wisdom Behind Oscar Triumphs!

Ever wonder what it’s like to pivot from chasing Hollywood dreams on the silver screen to curating a treasure trove of rare books nestled in a cozy West Hollywood nook? Well, that’s exactly the quirky twist Harvey Jason, a seasoned character actor, experienced when he told Steven Spielberg he’d be opening a bookstore after wrapping up work on The Lost World: Jurassic Park. Sounds wild, right? Yet, a year later, alongside his son Louis, Harvey turned that whimsical idea into Mystery Pier Books—a sanctuary for first editions and authentic Hollywood shooting scripts that even A-list celebs can’t resist. So, what’s it really like running a bookstore that feels like stumbling into Narnia, where Johnny Depp pops in wearing your merch, and Ryan Coogler’s signed Sinners script might just be your next big investment? Spoiler alert: it’s a blend of old-school charm, star-studded surprises, and the pure joy of discovering something rare and magical. Ready to dive into this unique story? LEARN MORE

6 min read

When Harvey Jason, a veteran character actor, was finishing his work on The Lost World: Jurassic Park in 1996, he found himself in a golf cart zipping across the Universal Pictures lot with the film’s director, Steven Spielberg.

“After this movie, I’m going to open a bookstore,” he told Spielberg. He says Spielberg laughed and looked at him as if he were crazy.

About a year later, Jason and his son Louis opened Mystery Pier Books in a tiny cottage just off Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood. They sell only fine first editions, many of them signed by the authors. They also deal in bound screenplays, the actual “shooting scripts” used on set. The day before the Academy Awards, a shooting script for Sinners, signed in black sharpie by director Ryan Coogler and star Michael B. Jordan, sat on their desk awaiting its leather binding. They predicted it would sell for a good price after the Oscars.

The Jasons are affable and knowledgeable, chatty if you like but happy to leave you to browsing. Rare bookstores can be stuffy, pretentious places; Mystery Pier is friendly. They cater to an A-list Hollywood clientele (one wall is hung with photos of Harvey and some of his regulars: Flea, Seth MacFarlane, Diane Keaton, Johnny Depp, and others) and also to any non-famous book lover who finds their way down the narrow alley to the shop, which, when you find it, feels like finding Narnia.

I’ve been shopping there for 20 years. I stopped in for a visit the day before the Oscars, which is always a buzzy weekend not only in L.A. but at the shop.

person gesturing in front of a wall of photo frames

Ryan D’Agostino

Harvey Jason, co-owner of Mystery Pier Books, is an actor himself—his credits include The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Save the Tiger.

Esquire: When was Mystery Pier born?

Harvey Jason: We opened the shop in August of ’98. I had just finished doing a Jurassic Park movie and decided to go into business with Louis. My whole life I had been an actor.

ESQ: Were you book collectors already?

Louis Jason: I was selling books online and at book fairs here and there. And then we happened upon this space.

Harvey: We’d both been collectors and readers all our lives. And then we found this space and we’ve been here for just over 27 years in this shop, and we’ve been called the number-one first-edition bookstore in America. It’s unbelievable. And to come in here every day is such an unbelievable joy. It never gets stale. And you never know who’s going to walk in. That’s half the joy of it.

ESQ: Who are some of your favorite regulars we may have heard of?

Harvey: One of my favorites is Johnny Depp. He always wears our T-shirt. [Harvey holds up a photograph of Depp playing with his band, Hollywood Vampires, wearing a Mystery Pier T-shirt.]

Louis: And people on the wall. We do a lot of A-list clientele.

Harvey: Flea of the Chili Peppers came to us the first week that we opened. That’s a long time ago. And he’s a good friend now. They’ve all been very, very loyal to us. Yeah, we did a lot of stuff for you too. All the people on the wall.

entrance to a house surrounded by greenery with steps leading up to it

Ryan D’Agostino

You’d be forgiven for mistaking Mystery Pier Books—which is in a tiny cottage just off Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood—for a bed and breakfast.

ESQ: Are most of your movie-business customers collectors themselves, or buying gifts, say for wrapping a film, or as an Oscar gift?

Harvey: Both. Paul Giamatti came in the day before the ceremony when he was nominated for playing the teacher in that movie a couple years ago—lovely guy. One actor, an A-list actor you would know, recently came in and bought 47 books for his daughter. He wanted to help her start a library. Some people buy gifts for each other—I think we’ll see a lot of customers Monday and Tuesday, after the Oscars.

ESQ: If someone comes to you looking for some specific artifact, do you try to find it?

Louis: We do that a lot. A script for a beloved film, maybe.

Harvey: We started this whole category, which no other bookshop has, called Hollywoodiana. Because we know these people, and we have a lot of scripts, which we beautifully encase, signed by all of our clients, who are actors. Nobody has anything like it. It’s a unique gift to give to somebody.

Louis: I design each case and then we have it made.

Harvey: And we’re both registered authenticators, so we do the authentication process as well.

Everybody who comes in, especially these A-list actors, has been truly wonderful. All except for one person, and I won’t tell you who because you know his name.

ESQ: When it first started happening—Flea comes in, then Johnny Depp, and on and on—what was that like?

Harvey: It was very satisfying indeed because it told us we were doing something unique and very special, and the people who come here are special. And I don’t just mean the stars. Every customer.

[We stand and look at the wall of fame.]

Harvey: Guillermo del Toro has been coming to us for a very long time, who is an angel. Walking sunshine, this guy. And a genius. He once did something that I will never, ever forget. We went to one of the Oscar parties about two or three years ago, and he was there sitting and talking to several of the most famous people you could name. But as soon as he sees us walk in the door, he jumps up—“Harvey! Louie!” For a couple of booksellers, it was very special.

ESQ: What will you be doing during this year’s ceremony?

Louis: It was fun those times we went, but these days I just enjoy staying home and watching on TV, to be honest. Ordering some takeout.

Harvey: When I took my mother, that was a great, great experience. She loved it. That was one time when, by some luck of the draw, we had good seats downstairs. I had just done Save the Tiger, and Jack Lemmon won the Oscar. I think it was 1973. Jack was a great guy—he was my sponsor to get into the Academy.

ESQ: Wait, you’re in Save the Tiger?

Harvey: Yeah! I played the gay designer.

ESQ [mind a little bit blown]: Oh, my God. Of course. I love that movie. You remember who Jack Lemmon beat that year for Best Actor? I think it was Pacino, Redford, maybe Brando—.

Harvey: Wonderful man. I saw him just before he died. He did that movie for nothing.

Louis [looking at his phone]: Okay I found it. The other nominees were Brando for Last Tango in Paris, Nicholson for The Last Detail, Pacino for Serpico, and Redford for The Sting.

collection of books on a shelf with titles and authors visible

Ryan D’Agostino

Only at Mystery Pier Books will you see scripts for the sex-work comedy Anora and Denzel Washington’s adaptation of Fences.

ESQ: And Lemmon wins.

Louis: I mean, that’s a who’s who.

Harvey: But truly, everybody who comes in, especially these A-list actors, has been truly wonderful. All except for one person, and I won’t tell you who because you know his name. He came in once, bought a cheap book. I saw him open the cover and saw the price, something like $400. He said, How much is this? I looked at him and said, Well, it’s $400 and tax. And he said, I’ll pay cash, that way I don’t have to pay tax. I said, Why wouldn’t you have to pay tax? He said, Well, I’m giving you cash, why would I pay tax? I said, Because it’s the right thing to do.

Louis: It’s also how a business works.

Harvey: He looked at me like I was an idiot. He doesn’t come in anymore.

ESQ: I see Seth MacFarlane on the wall. Great guy, and wicked smart.

Louis: Really smart. Seth’s great. The first time he came in—and I haven’t seen him in a while—he bought a Churchill set. We were hanging out. And a friend of mine was in and she whispered to me, Do you think I could ask him a question? So she said, Hi, Mr. MacFarlane—and he was so nice—she said, My best friend is getting married and she’s a huge fan of Family Guy. Can I have a picture with you? He said, I don’t do pictures, but take out your phone. And he did a three-minute monologue in the voice of Stewie on all the reasons they shouldn’t get married. Like, what if you get a divorce, what about the people you were both friends with? And everyone will have wasted money on a gift—it was hilarious.

Harvey: It was terrific.